JPH10284381A - Coater - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To further suppress consumption of a coating liquid while supplying the coating liquid uniformly onto the surface of a substrate. SOLUTION: The coater for coating the surface of a substrate with coating liquid while spinning the substrate comprises a nozzle section 7, a moving means, an intermittent region coating means, and a motor mechanism 26. The nozzle section 7 can deliver coating liquid to a region a substrate elongated in one direction at a predetermined interval or continuously. The moving means moves the nozzle section 7 relatively to the surface of the substrate in second direction intersecting the first direction. The intermittent region coating means coats the intermittent region of the substrate including the center of rotation thereof with the coating liquid while moving the nozzle section 7 relatively to the surface of the substrate. The motor mechanism 26 spreads the coating liquid from the intermittent region over the entire surface of the substrate by spinning the substrate.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a coating apparatus,
The present invention relates to a coating apparatus for coating a coating liquid such as a photoresist on a surface of a substrate.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As an apparatus for applying a coating liquid onto a substrate surface, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos.
A spin coater disclosed in Japanese Patent Publication No. 65-65 is known. In this spin coater, a substrate is held on a rotatable spin chuck, and a processing liquid is dropped from a nozzle onto a central portion of the substrate. Then, the substrate is rotated with a spin chuck to diffuse the coating liquid at the center of the substrate surface over the entire substrate surface by centrifugal force, and apply excess coating liquid to the substrate so that the film of the coating liquid on the substrate has a desired thickness. Shake it out.
Thus, the coating liquid is applied to the entire surface of the substrate. The coating solution shaken off from the center of the substrate by the centrifugal force scatters around and is collected after the completion of the coating process.

In such a conventional spin coater, since the coating liquid scatters around the substrate, the coating liquid must be supplied in a larger amount than the coating liquid required to form a film on the substrate surface. As a result, the consumption of the coating liquid increases.
Therefore, as shown in JP-A-7-284715, a coating liquid is supplied relatively thinly in a predetermined range slightly smaller than the whole area of the substrate surface by scanning the substrate surface with a slit nozzle or the like, and thereafter, There is also provided a technique in which the substrate is rotated to diffuse the coating liquid over the entire surface of the substrate.

[0004]

According to the above technique, since the coating liquid is supplied to a relatively large area in advance, it is not necessary to spread the coating liquid on the substrate surface by rotating the substrate. The supply of the coating liquid can be reduced thinly and consumption of the coating liquid can be suppressed. However, even with such a technique, the amount of the coating liquid scattered around the substrate due to the centrifugal force is not small, and a further reduction in consumption is required.

[0005] It is an object of the present invention to provide a coating solution evenly on a substrate surface while further reducing the consumption of the coating solution as compared with a conventional apparatus.

[0006]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a coating apparatus for rotating a substrate to apply a coating liquid to a surface of the substrate. An intermittent area application unit and a rotation unit are provided. The application liquid supply means is a means capable of continuously discharging the application liquid at predetermined intervals or in a long region in the first direction. The moving means is means for relatively moving the coating liquid supply means in a second direction intersecting the first direction with respect to the substrate surface. The intermittent area applying means is means for applying the application liquid to the intermittent area including the center of rotation of the substrate while moving the application liquid supply means relative to the substrate surface. The rotating means is means for rotating the substrate on which the coating liquid has been applied to the intermittent area and diffusing the coating liquid applied to the intermittent area over the entire surface of the substrate.

In this apparatus, the application liquid supply means
The coating liquid is supplied at predetermined intervals or continuously to a region long in the first direction on the substrate surface. Then, the application liquid supply unit is moved relative to the substrate in a second direction intersecting the first direction. At this time, when the application liquid is supplied at intervals in the first direction, the application liquid is supplied continuously during the relative movement, so that the application area long in the second direction is in the first direction. Formed intermittently. Also,
When the application liquid is continuously supplied in the first direction, the first supply is performed by intermittently supplying the application liquid during relative movement.
Is formed intermittently in the second direction. In any case, the application liquid is supplied to the center of rotation of the substrate when the substrate is rotated by the rotating means.

[0008] The substrate on which the coating liquid has been applied to the intermittent region in this manner is rotated to uniformly spread the coating liquid on the entire surface of the substrate. Here, since the application liquid is supplied to the intermittent region, the consumption of the application liquid is further reduced as compared with the case described in the above-mentioned publication in which the application liquid is supplied to the whole area slightly smaller than the entire area of the substrate surface. Is possible. In addition, the application liquid supplied onto the substrate is spread over an unsupplied region on the substrate by the rotation of the substrate, and is applied evenly.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the application liquid supply means supplies the application liquid to a continuous area that is long in the first direction. In addition, the intermittent area application means repeats the discharge and stop of the application liquid during the movement of the application liquid supply means to intermittently form the application area long in the first direction in the second direction. In this case as well, the consumption of the coating liquid can be further reduced as compared with the case where the coating liquid is supplied to the entire area smaller than the entire area of the substrate surface.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect, the application liquid supply means includes a nozzle having a continuous slit-shaped opening long in the first direction. In this case, since the coating liquid is supplied by the nozzle having the continuous slit-shaped opening, the variation in the supply amount of the coating liquid in the first direction can be reduced, and the coating liquid can be more uniformly supplied to the substrate surface.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the second aspect of the present invention, the application liquid supply means includes a nozzle having a plurality of small holes arranged close to each other along the first direction. I have. In this case, the consumption of the coating liquid can be further reduced as compared with the continuous slit-shaped opening.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the application liquid supply means supplies the application liquid at a predetermined interval in a long region along the first direction. . Further, the intermittent area applying means is for intermittently forming an application area long in the second direction in the first direction by continuously supplying the application liquid during the movement of the application liquid supply means. In this case, the application liquid is applied to the intermittent region in the opposite direction to that of the second aspect, but similarly, the consumption of the application liquid can be suppressed.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus of the first aspect, the application liquid supply means supplies the application liquid at a predetermined interval in a long area along the first direction. The intermittent area application unit repeatedly ejects and stops the application liquid during the movement of the application liquid supply unit to form an intermittent application area in both the first and second directions. In this case, the first
In addition, since the application region is formed intermittently in both the second direction, the application can be performed more uniformly on the surface of the substrate, and the consumption of the application liquid can be further reduced.

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus of the fifth or sixth aspect, the application liquid supply means has a nozzle having a plurality of slit-shaped openings formed intermittently in a first direction. ing. In this case, since a plurality of slit-shaped openings are provided in one nozzle, the coating liquid can be easily supplied at intervals, and the supply amount from each opening can be easily made uniform.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus of the fifth or sixth aspect, the coating liquid supply means is provided with a plurality of nozzles arranged side by side in the first direction and each having a slit-shaped opening having a predetermined length. have. In this case, the supply amount of the coating liquid in the first direction can be easily controlled, for example, by adjusting the shape of the opening of each nozzle, for example, to increase the supply amount near the center as compared to the peripheral portion. .

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus of the eighth aspect, the application liquid supply means further includes a discharge amount control means for controlling a discharge amount of the application liquid from the plurality of nozzles. I have. In this case, the supply amount can be controlled even if the shape of the opening of each nozzle is the same.

[0017] The coating apparatus according to the tenth aspect is the first aspect.
In the above device, the intermittent area applying means applies the application liquid to a plurality of concentric annular intermittent areas on the substrate surface.
In this case, when the substrate is rotated in a later step to diffuse the coating liquid, the coating liquid can be more easily and uniformly diffused. According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus of the first aspect, the moving means relatively moves the application liquid supply means in the first direction and the second direction with respect to the substrate surface.

In this case, the application area can be formed so as to draw by moving the application liquid supply means relative to the substrate. Therefore, the application liquid can be freely applied to the plurality of concentric annular intermittent regions. According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus of the first aspect, the application liquid supply means has a plurality of slit-shaped openings formed intermittently in the first direction, and is arranged in the second direction. The first
It has a nozzle and a second nozzle. Then, the intermittent area applying means intermittently forms an application area long in the second direction of the substrate in the first direction of the substrate by the first nozzle,
The substrate is rotated 90 ° and the first nozzle of the substrate is rotated by the second nozzle.
Is formed intermittently in the second direction of the substrate.

Here, the length of the opening of the first nozzle and the second
The length of the nozzle opening can be adjusted, and the width of the application area of the substrate can be changed vertically and horizontally. According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, in the apparatus according to any one of the first to twelfth aspects, the application liquid supply unit is disposed so as to be able to face the rotation unit. In this case, the application liquid can be applied to the intermittent area by holding the substrate by the rotating means, and the intermittent area can be applied and diffused by rotation in one stage, so that the space of the entire apparatus is reduced.

[0020] The coating apparatus according to the fourteenth aspect is the first aspect.
In any one of the devices from 1 to 12, a first substrate holding portion capable of holding the substrate and capable of facing the coating liquid supply means, and a second substrate holding means for holding and rotating the substrate coated with the coating liquid by the intermittent area coating means Section. in this case,
The application of the intermittent region and the diffusion by rotation are performed at different places. That is, the application to the substrate is performed by the two stages. Therefore, the processing time in one stage is shortened, and the overall throughput is improved.

[0021]

Embodiment

[First Embodiment] In FIG. 1, a coating apparatus employing a first embodiment of the present invention mainly includes a processing unit 1, a resist liquid pressure feeding unit 2, and a motor mechanism 26. In this coating apparatus, a photoresist (hereinafter, simply referred to as a resist liquid) is applied to a rectangular glass substrate P as shown in FIG. 2, and a coating process is performed.

The processing unit 1 includes a substrate holding unit 4 capable of holding the substrate P by vacuum suction and holding the substrate P horizontally, and a resist liquid supply unit 5 for supplying a resist liquid to the substrate P held by the substrate holding unit 4.
And The substrate holding unit 4 is rotatable, and is horizontally rotated by a motor mechanism 26. A cup 6 for preventing the resist solution from scattering during rotation is arranged around the substrate holding unit 4.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the resist solution supply section 5 is provided with a nozzle section 7 extending along the short side direction of the substrate P (the depth direction in FIG. 1; the first direction) along the upper surface of the substrate P. have. The nozzle section 7 is an inverted house-shaped member as shown in FIG. The bottom surface of the nozzle portion 7 is inclined so as to become lower toward the center from both ends in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P. The nozzle section 7 has a slit (opening) 20 having a length shorter than the short side of the substrate P, and is fixed to the lower end of the nozzle support arm 8. The upper end of the nozzle support arm 8 is supported by the moving frame 9 so as to be vertically movable. The moving frame 9 is movably supported by a moving guide 10. The movement guide 10 extends along the longitudinal direction of the substrate P (the left-right direction in FIG. 1; the second direction).

As shown in FIG. 4, a liquid reservoir 31 wider than the slit 20 is formed in the middle of the slit 20 inside the nozzle portion 7. The liquid reservoir 31 is for uniformly diffusing the resist liquid supplied from the resist liquid supply pipe 16 (described later) in the longitudinal direction of the nozzle portion 7 (the depth direction in FIG. 4). Resist liquid pressure feeding unit 2
As shown in FIG. 1, a pressure tank 11 accommodates a glass bottle 12 storing a resist solution and has an airtightly sealed inside. In the upper part of the pressurized tank 11, a pressurized pipe 13 to which a pressurized nitrogen gas is supplied from a nitrogen gas source (not shown) is opened. In the middle of the pressure pipe 13,
The supply / discharge three-way valve 14 and the regulator 15
They are arranged in this order from one side. The three-way valve 14
Can select whether to supply the nitrogen gas to the pressurized tank 11 or to exhaust the gas separately. The resist liquid supply pipe 16 is
One end thereof reaches near the bottom surface of the glass bottle 12, and the other end is connected to the nozzle unit 7. Resist liquid supply piping 1
In the middle of 6, a resist solution supply valve 18 and a suck back valve 17 are arranged in this order from the glass bottle 12 side.

Further, as shown in FIG. 5, the coating apparatus has a control unit 23 composed of a microcomputer. The control unit 23 includes a substrate holding unit 4, a driving unit for the nozzle support arm 8 and the moving frame 9, a supply / discharge three-way valve 14,
The resist liquid supply valve 18, the suck back valve 17, and the motor mechanism 26 are connected. Furthermore, various sensors (not shown) such as a sensor for detecting the positions of the nozzle support arm 8 and the moving frame 9 and other input / output devices are connected to the control unit 23.

The operation of the coating apparatus will be described with reference to the control flowcharts shown in FIGS. Step S1
Then, initial settings of the entire coating apparatus are performed. Next, the process proceeds to step S2, and waits for a transport mechanism (not shown) to carry the substrate P into the coating apparatus. When the substrate P is loaded, the process proceeds to step S3, where the substrate P is vacuum-adsorbed by the substrate holding unit 4.

Subsequently, a coating process is performed in step S4. In the coating process, as shown in FIG. 7, first, in step S10, the nozzle unit 7 is moved to the start position. Here, the nozzle unit 7 is arranged at a dotted line position shown in FIG. 8 (that is, a position where the nozzle unit 7 has entered a predetermined distance from the left end of the substrate P toward the substrate P). At this time, the bottom surface of the nozzle portion 7 is arranged with a predetermined gap from the substrate P. Step S
At 11, the nozzle unit 7 is moved horizontally in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P. In step S12, the discharge and stop of the resist liquid from the slit 20 are repeated at a predetermined cycle while moving the nozzle unit 7. Thereby, the resist liquid is intermittently supplied to the substrate P.
The discharge operation of the resist solution is performed by switching the three-way valve 14 to the supply side, further opening the resist solution supply valve 18, and opening the glass bottle 12.
To supply the resist solution to the nozzle unit 7 from the above. Further, the stopping of the discharge of the resist liquid in step S12 is performed by closing the resist liquid supply valve 18. When the resist solution is supplied in step S12, the length of the substrate P in the longitudinal direction
In consideration of the moving speed, the discharge / stop repetition cycle, and the discharge time, control is performed so that the resist liquid is always supplied to the rotation center (O in FIG. 8) of the substrate P.

By performing such processing,
As shown in FIG. 8, a coating area C that is long in the short side direction of the substrate P
Are formed intermittently in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P. That is,
The resist liquid is supplied to the intermittent region including the rotation center O of the substrate P. In step S13, it waits for the nozzle unit 7 to move as indicated by the arrow in FIG. 8 and reach the right end of the preset application area of the substrate P. When the nozzle unit 7 reaches the right end of the substrate P, the process proceeds to step S14, where the three-way valve 14 is switched to the exhaust side, and the resist liquid supply valve 18 is closed to completely stop the supply of the resist liquid. Step S15
Then, the movement of the nozzle unit 7 is stopped. Then, in step S16, as shown in FIG. 3, the nozzle portion 7 is retracted to a retract position diagonally above the right end of the substrate P.

Next, in step S17, the motor mechanism 26 is driven to rotate the substrate holder 4 at a predetermined rotation speed in the state shown in FIG. In step S18, it waits for a predetermined rotation processing time to elapse. During this time, the resist liquid supplied to the intermittent region of the substrate P moves in the outer peripheral direction due to the centrifugal force. As a result, the resist liquid spreads over the entire surface of the substrate P, and the resist liquid is diffused to regions other than the intermittent region. Next, the process proceeds from step S18 to step S19,
The rotation of the motor mechanism 26 is stopped, and the process returns to the main routine of FIG.

In step S5 in FIG. 6, the suction of the substrate P by the substrate holding unit 4 is released. In step S6, the process waits until the transport mechanism (not shown) discharges the substrate P for the next process. If the substrate P is unloaded, the process returns to step S2,
Wait for the next substrate P to be carried in. In the present embodiment, the pull-back operation of the resist solution by the suck back valve 17 may be performed every time the periodic discharge is stopped in step S12, or not when the discharge is stopped in step S14 but not in step S12. It may be performed.

[Modifications] (a) The repetition cycle of discharging and stopping the resist solution in step S12 in FIG. 7 may be changed depending on the position of the substrate P. In the example shown in FIG. 9, the width of the application area C0 at the center of the substrate P is larger than that at the periphery.
That is, even if a relatively large amount of the resist solution is supplied to the central portion, the amount of the resist solution scattered outside the substrate by the centrifugal force is small.
However, the resist liquid supplied to the peripheral portion is easily scattered outside the substrate. Therefore, in the example shown in FIG. 9, the supply amount of the resist solution is large in the central portion and is reduced toward the peripheral portion. Therefore, the width of each application region is as follows: application region C0> application region C1> application region C2> application region C3.

In such an example, the resist solution can be more efficiently applied to the entire substrate P, and the consumption of the resist solution can be further reduced. (B) In the above-described example, the slit 20 extending in the short side direction of the substrate is formed in the nozzle portion 7, but as shown in FIG. A nozzle unit 40 having a plurality of small holes 41 arranged in a row may be used. Further, as shown in FIG. 10B, the slit 20 may be formed at the center in the short side direction of the substrate, and the nozzle portion 40 may have a plurality of small holes 41 on both sides thereof. FIGS. 10A and 10B are views of the nozzle section 40 as viewed from the bottom, and an arrow M indicates the direction in which the nozzle section 41 moves.

[Second Embodiment] FIG. 11 shows a nozzle section 50 applied to a coating apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In this example, the nozzle portion 50 has a plurality of slits 51 along the extending direction (the short side direction of the substrate). Here, each slit 51 has the same length.

By supplying the resist liquid using such a nozzle section 50, as shown in FIG.
Can be formed intermittently in the short side direction. The arrow M in FIGS. 11 and 12 indicates the moving direction of the nozzle unit 50. When such a nozzle unit 50 is used, the resist liquid is continuously discharged in step S12 of FIG. 7 in the above example. Other processes are the same as the previous example. Of course, also in this example, the slit 51 is arranged so that the resist liquid is always supplied to the rotation center O of the substrate P.

[Modification] (a) As a modification of the second embodiment, the nozzle 50
The length of each slit may be changed so that the width of the application region at the center is larger than the width of the application region at the periphery, as described above. (B) When a resist solution is applied to an intermittent region as shown in FIG. 12, as shown in FIG. 13 (a), a plurality of nozzle portions 60a each having a slit 51 as described above,
The 60b, 60c, 60d, and 60e may be arranged side by side in the short side direction of the substrate. In this case, the central nozzle portion 6
0c, a resist liquid supply valve 62 is connected to a pair of intermediate nozzles 60b, 60d, and a resist liquid supply valve 63 is connected to the outermost pair of nozzles 60a, 60e. By connecting, each nozzle part 60a-60e
It is desirable to be able to individually control the amount of resist solution supplied to the substrate.

Of course, a resist liquid supply valve may be connected to each of the nozzles so that the amount of resist liquid supplied to all of the nozzles can be individually controlled. (C) As shown in FIG.
1 and a plurality of small holes 41 at both ends.
May be used in combination with the nozzle portion 60g having

(D) The nozzle 50 of the second embodiment,
By periodically repeating the discharge and stop of the resist liquid using the nozzle 60 as in the first embodiment, it is possible to form intermittent application regions in both the first direction and the second direction. Also, using the nozzle portions 60f and 60g,
Either or either of them may be periodically repeated to discharge and stop.

Third Embodiment In the first and second embodiments, a long coating area in one direction is formed intermittently in the other direction. In this embodiment, a concentric annular area is formed intermittently. doing. FIG. 14 shows the configuration of the nozzle section in this case. The nozzle unit 70 shown in this figure is rotatable around the rotation center O of the substrate P, and extends long in the radial direction. And the bottom has a plurality of slits 71
a, 71b, 71c, 71d are arranged along the direction in which the nozzle unit 70 extends. The slits 71a are arranged so as to include the rotation center O, and the lengths of the slits become shorter as going to the peripheral portion. That is, the length of the slit is determined as follows: slit 71a> slit 71
b> slit 71c> slit 71d. The nozzle unit 70 is movable so that it can take a position retracted from above the substrate P and a position shown in FIG. 14 so as not to hinder the transfer of the substrate P and the like.

FIG. 15 shows an intermittent coating area obtained by rotating such a nozzle section 70. The coating area C0 is formed by supplying the resist liquid by the slit 71a, the coating area C1 is formed by the slit 71b, the coating area C2 is formed by the slit 71c, and the coating area C3 is formed by supplying the resist liquid by the slit 71d. Note that the slit 71d forming the region C3 deviates from the surface of the substrate at the long side of the substrate. During that time, it is desirable to provide a valve or the like so that only the supply of the resist liquid from the slit 71d can be stopped.

In such an embodiment, since the plurality of annular coating regions are formed concentrically, the resist liquid in each coating region is easily diffused by rotation, and the coating can be performed more uniformly with a small amount of the resist liquid. . [Modifications] (a) As shown in FIG. 16, two nozzle portions 75 and 76
A plurality of annular application regions can be formed concentrically by using. In this example, the first nozzle portion 75 is formed so as to extend in the short side direction of the substrate P, and is movable above the substrate P in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P. The second nozzle portion 76 is formed so as to extend in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P, and is movable above the substrate P in the short side direction of the substrate P.
The first nozzle section 75 has a plurality of slits 75a to 75c arranged along the short side direction of the substrate P. The central slit 75a is the longest, the middle pair of slits 75b adjacent thereto is the second longest, and the peripheral pair of slits 75c is the shortest. That is, the length of each slit is such that slit 75a> a pair of slits 75b> a pair of slits 75c. The second nozzle portion 76 is provided with a pair of slits 76 arranged along the longitudinal direction of the substrate P, respectively.
b, 76c, the length of the central slit 76b is the same as the length of the slit 75b of the first nozzle portion 75, and the length of the outer slit 76c is the same as the length of the slit 75c of the first nozzle portion 75. It is the same as

A resist liquid supply valve (not shown) is individually connected to each slit, so that the timing of supplying the resist liquid from each slit can be controlled. When an annular coating region is formed by such a nozzle portion, first, the resist solution is supplied from each slit while moving the first nozzle portion 75 in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P as shown in FIG. By controlling the timing, a long coating area in the longitudinal direction of the substrate is formed intermittently in the short side direction. In this case, the outermost coating region is the longest, the middle coating region is the next longest, and the central coating region is the shortest. Next, as shown in FIG. 17B, while moving the second nozzle portion 76 in the short side direction of the substrate P, the supply timing of the resist solution from each slit is controlled, and the second nozzle portion 76 is moved in the short side direction of the substrate P. A long coating region is formed intermittently in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P. With these application regions, a central application region C0, an intermediate annular application region C1, and an outer peripheral annular application region C2 are formed concentrically. The width of each application area is reduced toward the outside.

(B) The annular intermittent application area as shown in FIG. 17 (b) can also be formed by one nozzle.
That is, first, as shown in FIG. 18A, each slit 7 is moved while moving the nozzle portion 75 in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P.
By controlling the supply timing of the resist liquid from 5a to 75c, a long coating area in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P is formed intermittently in the short side direction of the substrate P. Next, the substrate P is rotated by 90 °. This state is shown in FIG. Next, the supply timing of the resist solution is controlled while moving the nozzle portion 75 in the direction opposite to the previous direction, and the application region is formed so as to connect the application region formed earlier.

As a result, a plurality of annular coating regions substantially similar to the example of FIG. 17 can be formed concentrically. (C) Further, as shown in FIG. 19, a plurality of annular application regions are formed concentrically by using a nozzle portion 80 which is movable in the X and Y directions above the substrate and has a slit 81 of a predetermined width. You can also. That is, by moving the nozzle portion 80 so as to draw along the arrow in the drawing, the application region C0 including the rotation center O of the substrate, the peripheral application region C1, and the peripheral application region C2 are moved. It can be formed concentrically.

(D) FIG. 11 in the second embodiment
The nozzle area 50 is stopped at a position passing above the center of rotation O of the substrate P, and the substrate P is rotated by 180 ° while discharging the liquid from the nozzle section 50. Can be formed. Further, FIG.
The nozzle part 50 shown in FIG.
Is stopped at a position passing above the rotation center O of the
The application area can also be formed concentrically by rotating by 60 °.

[Fourth Embodiment] FIG. 20 shows a fourth embodiment. In this example, two nozzle portions 83 and 84 are arranged in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P. The first nozzle portion 83 has two slits 83a and 83b along the short side direction of the substrate P, and the second nozzle portion 84 has three slits 84a, 84b and 84c along the short side direction of the substrate P. have. The slits 83a and the slits 84a are arranged so as to partially overlap with each other in the longitudinal direction of the substrate, but are shifted from each other. The same applies to the relationship between the slit 83b and the slit 84c. The slit 84b is formed at the center of the substrate P in the short side direction. And the width (length) of each slit
The dimensions are as follows.

Slit 84b> Slit 84a = 84c
> Slit 83a = 83b In such an embodiment, the first and second nozzle portions 8
While moving 3,84 in the longitudinal direction of the substrate (the direction of arrow M in FIG. 20), the coating region long in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P is intermittently moved in the short side direction of the substrate P using only the first nozzle portion 83. Form. Next, the substrate P is rotated by 90 ° and the two nozzle portions 83 and 84 are moved in the opposite direction (the direction of the arrow in FIG. 21) while using only the second nozzle portion 84 in the short side direction of the substrate. A long coating region is formed intermittently in the longitudinal direction of the substrate P.

FIG. 21 shows the intermittent coating area formed in this manner. In the drawing, a region indicated by a solid line is a coating region formed by the first nozzle unit 83, and a region indicated by a dashed line is a coating region to be formed by the second nozzle unit 84. In this case, the width and the position of the application region in the longitudinal direction and the application region in the short side direction on the substrate P can be individually controlled by changing the slit of the nozzle portion.

[Fifth Embodiment] In each of the above embodiments, the step of applying the resist liquid to the substrate P and the step of rotating the substrate P to diffuse the resist liquid are performed in one stage. May be performed on different stages. This example is shown in FIG. The apparatus shown in the figure has a coating stage 85 and a rotary diffusion stage 86. A transfer robot (not shown) for transferring a substrate between these stages is provided.

The coating stage 85 is, for example,
The nozzle unit 7 as shown in the embodiment and the substrate holding device 9
0. The substrate holding device 90 here does not rotate. The nozzle unit 7 is movable along the surface of the substrate holding device 90 in the direction of the arrow in the figure. Each device for supplying a resist solution to the nozzle unit 7 as described above is connected to the nozzle unit 7.

Further, the rotary diffusion stage 86 has a substrate rotating device 91 which can rotate while holding the substrate. The substrate rotating device 91 is configured to be rotated by a rotating mechanism such as a motor (not shown). In such an apparatus, the resist liquid is applied to the above-described intermittent area in the application processing stage 85. Then, the substrate having the intermittent region coated with the resist liquid is conveyed to the rotary diffusion stage 86, where the substrate is rotated, and the resist liquid applied to the intermittent region is diffused over the entire substrate surface.

Here, the processing time in each stage is shorter than in the case where coating and rotation are performed in one stage. Therefore, the throughput of the apparatus is improved, and the overall processing time is reduced.

[0052]

As described above, according to the present invention, the consumption of the coating liquid can be suppressed as compared with the conventional apparatus.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of a coating apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partial perspective view of a nozzle portion during a coating process.

FIG. 3 is a schematic front view showing one state during a coating process.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a schematic block diagram showing a control configuration of a coating apparatus.

FIG. 6 is a control flowchart of the coating apparatus.

FIG. 7 is a control flowchart of the coating apparatus.

FIG. 8 is a plan view showing one state during a coating process.

FIG. 9 is a plan view of a substrate showing a coating state according to a modified example of the first embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a bottom view of a nozzle section according to another modification of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a bottom view of a nozzle according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a plan view of a substrate showing a coating state according to the second embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a schematic view of a nozzle portion according to a modification of the second embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a plan view of a nozzle according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a plan view of a substrate showing a coating state according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a plan view of a nozzle section according to a modification of the third embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a plan view of a substrate showing a coating state according to a modification of the third embodiment.

FIG. 18 is a plan view showing a nozzle portion and a coating state according to another modification of the third embodiment.

FIG. 19 is a plan view showing a nozzle portion and a coating state according to still another modification of the third embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a plan view of a nozzle unit and a substrate according to a fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a plan view of a coating state according to the fourth embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a schematic front view of a coating apparatus according to a fifth embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Processing part 4 Substrate holding part 5 Resist liquid supply part 7, 40, 50, 60a-60e, 70, 75, 76,
80, 83, 84 nozzle unit 18, 61, 62, 63 Resist liquid supply valve 20, 51, 71a to 71d, 75a to 75c, 76
b, 76c, 80a, 83a, 83b, 84a to 84c
Slit 23 Control unit 90 Substrate holding device 91 Substrate rotating device

Claims (14)

[Claims] A coating apparatus for applying a coating liquid to a substrate surface by rotating a substrate, wherein the coating liquid can be continuously or continuously discharged in a long region in a first direction. Coating liquid supply means; moving means for moving the coating liquid supply means relative to the substrate surface in a second direction intersecting the first direction; and moving the coating liquid supply means relative to the substrate surface. An intermittent area applying means for applying the application liquid to the intermittent area including the center of rotation of the substrate while relatively moving, and applying the application liquid applied to the intermittent area by rotating the substrate having the application liquid applied to the intermittent area. A rotation unit for diffusing the entire surface of the substrate. 2. The coating liquid supply means supplies a coating liquid to a long continuous area in the first direction. The intermittent area coating means supplies the coating liquid while the coating liquid supply means is moving. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the application and the stop of the liquid are repeated to form a coating area long in the first direction intermittently in the second direction. 3. The coating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said coating liquid supply means has a nozzle having a continuous slit-shaped opening long in said first direction. 4. The coating apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said coating liquid supply means has a nozzle having a number of small holes arranged close to each other along said first direction. 5. The application liquid supply means supplies the application liquid at a predetermined interval to a long area along the first direction, and the intermittent area application means comprises a coating liquid supply means. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the coating liquid is continuously supplied during the movement of the liquid to form a coating area long in the second direction intermittently in the first direction. 6. The application liquid supply means supplies the application liquid at a predetermined interval to a long area along the first direction, and the intermittent area application means comprises a coating liquid supply means. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the application liquid is repeatedly ejected and stopped during the movement of the coating liquid to form an intermittent coating area in both the first and second directions. 7. The coating apparatus according to claim 5, wherein said coating liquid supply means has a nozzle having a plurality of slit-shaped openings formed intermittently in said first direction. 8. The coating according to claim 5, wherein said coating liquid supply means has a plurality of nozzles arranged side by side in said first direction and each having a slit-shaped opening of a predetermined length. apparatus. 9. The coating apparatus according to claim 8, wherein said coating liquid supply means further includes a discharge amount control means for controlling a discharge amount of the coating liquid from said plurality of nozzles. 10. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said intermittent region applying means applies a coating liquid to a plurality of concentric annular intermittent regions on said substrate surface. 11. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said moving means moves said coating liquid supply means relative to said substrate surface in said first direction and said second direction. 12. The first and second nozzles each having a plurality of slit-shaped openings formed intermittently in the first direction and arranged in the second direction. The intermittent area applying means intermittently forms a long application area in the second direction of the substrate in the first direction of the substrate by the first nozzle, and then rotates the substrate by 90 ° 2. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the second nozzle intermittently forms a coating area long in the first direction on the substrate in the second direction on the substrate. 3. 13. The coating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said coating liquid supply means is arranged so as to be able to face said rotating means. 14. A first substrate holding part capable of facing the coating liquid supply means and holding the substrate, and a second substrate holding part for holding and rotating the substrate coated with the coating liquid by the intermittent area coating means. The coating device according to any one of claims 1 to 12, comprising: